Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 September 1876 — Workmen and Their Instructors. [ARTICLE]

Workmen and Their Instructors.

What are the chances of combining in one man, first, a mechanic sufficiently expert as a workman to stand legitimately as an authority and teacher to a large shop of workmen; secondly, one with sufficient judgment and command to govern them, and thirdly, one who shall ruso be an expert theoretical engineer? Let us see. Out of every 100 turners, there will be found not more than two of the highest order of efficiency. Out of 100 workmen, not more than five at most are capable or taking charge of men. Out of 100 men, not more than five are expert at the planer as well as the lathe; then again, not more than five in 100 are capable of explaining even what they do know. Out of every 100, there may be also five who have a knowledge of mathematics sufficient to make thß calculations absolutely necessary to their work, if required to do so; then, perhaps, five per cent, of workmen can make a decent mechanical drawing. But, on the other hand, five per cent, are unsteady, five per cent, are comparatively untutored, and so on; so that the chance of finding the above-mentioned combination inone man is somewhat small. It becomes apparent, then, that as a "rule it is not the useful workmen who are promoted into better positions, for the reason that the requisites to fill those positions include requirements other than manipulative skill; which requirements in the aggregate give practical expertness a comparatively small place in the general qualification of the foreman. Thus it happens that we may find a hundred cases wherein the workmen of a shop have a profound respect for some particularly expert workman, while only one case in which such respect is entertained by the workmen for the foreman of a shop; and it generally happens that, where such respect does exist, it is a bar to the advancement of the expert for the reason of the impossibility of his assuming control over men with whom his relations have been so intimate. That this should be so is not at all unreasonable, because his superiority is brought before them almost every day of their lives. He is to them, to a certain extent, a mystery in and upon a matter in which they themselves are to themselves masters ; for of what does the ordinary mechanic assume to know more than of the trade at which he spends his days from morning till night, year in and year out ? When a mechanic exerts himself to his utmost, when he puts forth the whole strength of his muscles as well as his mind, when he calls to his aid hll his experience, all his knowledge, all his determination, and all his strength, and then fails, and meets another who, with tire same tools and under the same conditions, can perform vastly more and superior work, he knows that this capability is not due to either advantages of brute force or school education, but to some indefinable qualification known as skill. This seems to him to set education, perseverance and strength at defiance; then respect creeps in, and the skill becomes a shrine ana its possessor an idol. An example of this kind occurs to our mind. A tail, strong man, witn brawny arms and with muscles hard and well developed, was engaged in filing up some parallel bars; he had the work by contract, and had filed up scores of them. He was an experienced mechanic, and had gotten himself into trouble for working so quickly as to get those men who chanced to have the same work to do by day’s work mto disrepute, because of their inability to compete with him, even in cost, let alone in time. On one occasion however, a somewhat delicate-looking workman, who worked near, challenged him to file up a bar in competition with himself (the challenger). The gauntlet thus thrown down was accepted, and for three hours the Contest raged. Each was allowed new, rough, second cut and smooth files; and the excitement among the other workmen. of whom there were eight, ranged along the sides of the same bench, was at a high pitch. The challenger finished his work first, and it was examined by his opponent and pronounced well executed ; but a repetition of the trial of skill was requested, and made, with the same result. It was in winter; the workshop had no heating apparatus of any kina, and, though it was freezing, the contestants were in their shirt-sleeves, and yet were perspiring. Then the challenger waatbns addressed by his opponent, who nai^ceased working and had been engaged a few moments in apparent deep thought: “ I cannot understand it; I can only accept and respect it. I have nearly twice your strength, and have had ten years more experience. I can look clear over your head, and can hold you with one hand; and yet I am Beatpn, beaten at my own job, too; and, worse than all, I cannot for the life of me tell how it was done.” He surveyed himself, held out his strong arms and looked at them, then shrtlggea his shoulder; and went on with his work. He might look within himself, and find, so far as his understanding was capable of judging, every element of superiority, except in that mysterious, intangible. indescribable qualification known to him under the cognomen of skill, which the closest scrutiny of the most experienced eye cannot detect save in its results. —Scientific American.